


Fireflies

by SkipBack



Series: Scenarios Timeline [4]
Category: Invader Zim
Genre: ROBOT FIREFLIES WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, anyway, funny haha, here's to owl city references and dorky cockroach boys, how bizarre amirite, i guess anyway - Freeform, something something fireflies-, wow there's another story by zeisty in one day, yayyyyy it's the confession story, you would not believe your eyes-
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 21:33:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29320950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkipBack/pseuds/SkipBack
Summary: I’d like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly.It’s hard to say that I’d rather stay awake when I’m asleepBecause my dreams are bursting at the seams.
Relationships: Keef/Zib | Zim Number1
Series: Scenarios Timeline [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1790731
Kudos: 6





	Fireflies

**Author's Note:**

> well well welly well well
> 
> looks like there's another story i forgot to post that i'm gonna post right now because i can
> 
> no "notes you need to know" or anything, just "well welly well well welly well"

"What are we doing again?" 

  
  


"You'll see," Zib said for the millionth time. Despite how many times he had to answer the question, his elation never faltered; he was bouncing on the balls of his feet, unable to squash the enormous smile on his face.

  
  


"Jeez, did you eat a kangaroo or something?" Keef asked, laughing as he followed Zib out of the car. "What got into you?"

  
  


"You'll see! You have the controller, right?" He barely waited for the ginger's response; he was already walking off into the direction of the forest, a jar hidden under a cloth in his hands.

  
  


"Uh... yeah?" Keef ran to catch up to him, holding up the gray controller for Zib to see. "You know, I'm starting to feel nervous about this. Mysterious object, dark forest, midnight... you're not planning on doing anything weird to me, right?"

  
  


"PFFT!" was the reply. "You say that like you don't trust me or something."

  
  


"Well, I never know with you," Keef told him. "Besides, I  _ literally just found out  _ you're not a clone gone wrong two days ago. You have to excuse me for being a little worried about what you're capable of."

  
  


"So you really _ don't _ trust me," Zib said. His high mood was starting to come down, his shoulders slumping.

  
  


" _ No! _ I didn't say that," Keef said. "I'm just... cautious. Y'know?"

  
  


"Hmm." That hadn't helped much.

  
  


"You're  _ sooo _ moody." The other teen gave him a playful shove. "Y'know, it's not good for you to let everything get you down. You should try to do what I do and look on the bright side of things. I didn't say I don't not trust you."

  
  


"Alright, Mister Brightside," Zib joked, "maybe I'll try that some time."

  
  


Keef smiled at him, and it was as though his elated mood was crashing back in on him all at once. 

  
  


"Oh! This is it." Zib set the concealed jar down in the clearing, yanking off the cloth.

  
  


"...okay, wasn't expecting that," Keef said.

  
  


"Just... hold on." Zib popped the lid off, taking the controller out of the ginger's hands. "You're gonna like this, I swear."

  
  


He fiddled with the controls before a bright neon green light flared within the jar. Then, seemingly thousands upon thousands of neon green fireflies burst out of the top, moving as one organism.

  
  


"What...?" Keef was clearly speechless for once as the neon fireflies overhead formed a perfect ball, some of them dimmed to suspiciously make it look like planet Earth. 

  
  


"I came up with this in a dream, when I was younger," Zib explained. "I call these little guys neonflies. There's at least ten thousand of these puppies in total. Don't ask how I fit them in that jar."

  
  


One of the neonflies flew down to hover by Keef's face before the rest broke their Earth formation overhead, floating around them. Keef stared up at the neonfly before him with an awestruck look on his face.

  
  


"This guy right here is the master neonfly," Zib told him. "That's why it's so much bigger and brighter than the others. It pretty much controls what the others do. Like, if I want them to make a shape..." 

  
  


Once again, the neonflies were on the move. They swirled overhead before they made their Earth formation again. 

  
  


"The master neonfly is programmed to tell the others to make a shape," Zib said.

  
  


"You... you did this all for  _ me? _ " Keef asked.

  
  


Though the ginger boy was still staring up at the neonflies, Zib's expression softened. "Of course," he said. 

  
  


"How long did it take you to make all these?" Keef asked as the neonflies broke formation again, the master neonfly floating down to him again. He held out his hand and the neonfly hovered over the palm of his hand.

  
  


"Years," Zib admitted. "Making ten thousand nanobots look and act like fireflies isn't as easy as it looks; Dad even had to help me with five thousand of them. But I was working on them long before I realized I was starting to like you differently."

  
  


At that, Keef turned his head to look at Zib, his eyes wide. "Starting to like me differently?" he echoed. "What do you mean...?"

  
  


"I..." Zib cleared his throat, his chest suddenly tight. "I... well, I-I..." He shakily sighed. "There's a slight possibility I  _ may or may not _ be head over heels in love with you."

  
  


Keef just stared, once again weirdly quiet. 

  
  


Zib started sweating. He'd just made things awkward, didn't he? His mouth began rambling, words tumbling over each other. "I-I mean, there's also a possibility I'm _ not _ , so-so... this is okay! Let's, uh... I think some actual fireflies are checking out the neonflies, l-look!" He pointed, but the ginger did not look up.

  
  


He clutched the controller to his chest, his heart aching. "L-look, I'm sorry, I-I didn't... why don't we just forget I said that? I didn't... I'm sorry, I—"

  
  
"Oh my gosh Zib  _ stop, _ " Keef said, and Zib's mouth slammed closed. "It's not the end of the world just because I stop talking for  _ one second _ ."


End file.
